A Desert King
by Lady Joy Reborn
Summary: A mysterious person grabs Edgar! Who is this person and what do they want from the King of Figaro?


Joy: Okay, I've got writer's block on "A New Threat." So while I'm thinking about that, I'll just throw this story at ya'll to read. It's the whole story in one shot. I was too lazy to break it into chapters. It's another FF fanfic, only this one is soley dedicated to FF3/6. I'll let you read it to find out more. Oh, and if anyone wants to review "A New Threat" and give me ideas, I would be happy. ^__^  
  
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A Desert King  
  
The fighting was over. Kefka was finally dead, and magic had vanished from Earth. There was a huge party taking place at Figaro Castle to celebrate. Terra was having a wonderful time. She was with her friends, and everyone had made it out alive. She scanned the ballroom, noting each one.  
Strago and Relm were talking in a corner as Relm painted Strago's portrait. Only this time it didn't jump off the canvas. Terra was happy to see that the disappearance of magic had ill affects on the older man. In fact, he had become happier since the event.  
Locke and Celes had retired to a quiet corner of their own and were talking softly to each other. Terra sighed. At one point, she thought that she and Locke would share some sort of a bond like he and Celes did, but she realized what she felt was caring for him, and not love. She was happy for the couple, and wished them well.  
Sabin, Cyan, and Gau were by the twin thrones. Sabin had taken a seat upon his, and the three were in deep conversation. Terra thought about what each of them had to endure to come to this point. Especially Gau. He was so young, yet he had to grow up so fast. Cyan had to lose his family and home to the evilness of Kefka. Sabin...well Sabin had to be forced to make a dire decision. Whether to give up his birthright or lose his freedom. In some ways, Edgar made that choice for him in the form of a coin toss.  
Terra's mind then wandered to Edgar. She had grown fond of the young King of Figaro. But she didn't expect him to return her feelings for him. She paused. Could it be that she loved him? She had never given the matter much thought, but she almost felt that when she was with him, anything was possible. She closed her eyes and pictured his face. His fine hair tied back into a ponytail. His soft face, deep blue eyes that glistened in the sun like the sea, and his perfect smile that literally brightened up the room he stood in.  
Suddenly the Chancellor burst into the room, carrying a piece of paper. "The king has been abducted!"  
  
Edgar was bound and gagged to the mast of a sailing ship. He had just regained consciousness after being clubbed on the head in his bedchamber. He glanced around, inspecting his surroundings. 'A pirate ship!' the king thought. 'They must be holding me for ransom of some sort.'  
A dark figure approached him. As he got closer, Edgar got a better look at him. He had on a cloak and hood that shielded his face, but Edgar could tell that he was not all human. His eyes glowed red under the hood. As soon as he was within arms length of the king, the figure reached up and removed the hood. Edgar's eyes grew wide as he beheld his captor.  
  
"Hurry, everyone! We need to hurry!" Sabin urged the others on as they boarded the Falcon in search of the kidnapped king. He was worried because the note left behind by Edgar's captor did not mention ransom of any sort. It simply read that they had the king, nothing more. He feared for his brother's life at the hands of the mercenaries.  
"Relax, Sabin," Setzer said as he took his place at the helm.  
"Soon we shall find these villains and bring them to justice," Cyan stated firmly. The others nodded in agreement.  
'I just hope we find them in time to save Edgar,' Terra thought with concern.  
  
The man was NOT a man, but a woman.  
She had blue hair that came past her shoulders, and red eyes. She brought her slender hand up and brushed away a stray hair from Edgar's face. He flinched, moving his face away from her touch.  
"What's wrong, Your Majesty? Does that not please you?" the woman said, looking hurt. "Oh well, looks like I lost my touch." She turned to face her men. "We sail for Lockheart Island, men!" She walked away from Edgar and went to the railing.  
Edgar glared at her. He wanted to speak, but the gag made that impossible. 'What does she want?' The answer seemed obvious. 'Money.'  
The woman suddenly whirled around to face him. She reached him in just short steps. The two glared angrily at each other for more than a moment. 'You can read my thoughts, can't you?' Edgar thought. His captor nodded in reply. All was silent for another moment. Then, much to Edgar's surprise, she removed his gag.  
"I did not abduct you for mere money, Highness."  
"Then why bother taking me? I'm a king. You're a pirate. It is a perfect opportunity for you to make a buck."  
"I have much more important things in store for you. I will not waste this opportunity just to make money, when I know I will get so much more out of you by keeping you on my ship until we reach Lockheart Island."  
"I have never heard of such a place." Edgar looked at her in confusion.  
"You will. Soon we will reach it, and I will have something better than money. I will be free again." Her face softened. "Until then, you're my most honored guest, Your Majesty."  
Edgar smirked. "Do you always treat your guests as such?"  
The woman seemed thoughtful. "You have a point. But I wouldn't want you to escape, now would I?"  
"My dear lady, I am curious as to what you have in store for me. I have no intentions of escaping."  
"Hmm...how do I know you speak the truth?" she asked.  
"We're on a ship. There aren't that many places to escape to," he countered truthfully. "Now, can you please untie me? This rope is extremely tight, and I do have delicate skin."  
"I wouldn't want you to be injured." She paused. "Very well, but any funny stuff and you'll find yourself suffering from worse than rub burn." Edgar nodded, and his captor produced a dagger from her belt. She carefully cut the king loose.  
He messaged his sore wrists gingerly, then said, "Perhaps you are not as bad of a hostess as I earlier suspected." His statement brought a look of shock to the woman.  
"I...I thank you, Your Majesty. I should introduce myself. My name is Ebony." She bowed deeply to the king.  
"That is...a lovely name." He was a little shocked at the woman's change of attitude.  
"Thank you, Highness."  
"Are you the captain of this vessel, Ebony?" Edgar asked.  
"Yes," came Ebony's answer.  
"Are you...are you an esper?" Edgar asked, motioning to the captain's blue hair. She looked down, and for the first time, Edgar noticed she was wearing a medallion around her neck. She fingered it.  
"This is...difficult to explain."  
  
"Keep flying around, Setzer. They couldn't have taken him far." Sabin and the others were desperately searching the land and sea for Edgar. At each passing moment, the party grew more and more worried about their comrade.  
Just then, Terra spotted a ship sailing across the sea.  
  
"And so, I became trapped in this world. I cannot return to the esper world as the others have," Ebony concluded.  
Edgar felt sorry for Ebony. She was so apart from those she loved, with no way of returning home. Again Ebony was able to read his mind.  
"Oh, but there is a way for me to return to the esper world." She received a shocked look from Edgar. "That is why I need you. You are the only one who can help me."  
Edgar was about to ask how when they heard a noise overheard. They looked to the sky as the sailors shouted in amazement. It was the Falcon! In seconds, his brothers, Terra, and Cyan had dropped to the deck of the ship.  
"NO!" Ebony shouted. "You can't take him!" She stepped in front of Edgar.  
Sabin raised his claws. "Wanna bet?" A clash seemed eminent.  
"Stop!" Edgar yelled, stepping in between his brother and Ebony.  
"Edgar, move out of the way! I am gonna finish this once and for all," Sabin stated.  
"Are you okay Edgar?" Terra asked with concern.  
"I am fine. I would be better if my muscle-headed brother would start listening to me."  
"What dost thou mean, Edgar?" Cyan asked in confusion.  
"I don't want you to rescue me."  
"WHAT?" Sabin cried. "Are you out of your mind?"  
Edgar moved closer. His friends crowded around him. "The captain's name is Ebony. She's an esper." Terra gasped, and glanced at Ebony. The captain looked worried, and she absently fingered a medallion around her neck.  
"But all the espers went through the Sealed Gate."  
"Not ALL of them. Ebony is your age, Terra. She came through the gate when we opened it. Only she was able to control her powers quicker than the others using the medallion she wears. She—needs my help. Please." His voice seemed so pleading that his friends nodded in agreement. "Thank you." He walked over to Ebony.  
Ebony was sure he would leave with them. 'If he does, I will lose my chance to get home.' But when she saw him walking toward him, her heartbeat quickened.  
"Captain Ebony, I will stay with you." She gasped in excitement.  
"Oh, thank you, Highness!"  
"But, we want to accompany you on the Falcon," Sabin insisted.  
"Of course, you can! Oh, thank you! Thank you!" She took Edgar's hands in her own. "You won't regret it. I promise!"  
  
The Falcon circled overhead like a real bird. Edgar sat leaning against the mast. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to Ebony to be asleep.  
'He looks so peaceful,' she thought as she gazed at him. 'He'll certainly need the sleep. He has been put through a lot.' Just then her first mate went over to her.  
"Captain, we are nearing Lockheart Island."  
"Good. I'll wake our guest." She walked over and gently shook Edgar. "We're here, Your Majesty." He got up slowly, stretching. Then they looked over and the land mass before them.  
  
Lockheart Island was an island that was shaped like a heart. It had a huge gap in the center of it. Tall mountains surrounded the gap. There was no where safe to land the Falcon, so everyone but Sabin and Terra agreed to stay behind. "Just be careful," Locke advised. They agreed and followed Ebony out to the island.  
As they were traveling, Edgar began to wonder. He knew Ebony could hear his thoughts, but he didn't mind. He had become used to it. He wondered why she had taken him here, and how he could be of any help to her.  
"There is a door, Highness." As if on cue, Ebony began to explain. Edgar knew she would. "A magical door. A scroll foretold that only a desert king could open the door that leads to the esper world."  
"Why only a desert king?" Edgar asked, finally understanding his purpose for being there. He and Sabin exchanged looks.  
"I think it is a balance of power. Long ago, when the War ended, espers were afraid that it would be repeated if they were discovered, so my ancesters created the Esper World. That much you know already. What few people know is that at the time there was one human the espers trusted. In fact, they trusted that person enough to give him some of their power."  
"Really?" Terra asked.  
Ebony nodded. "That person was your ancestor, Your Majesty. The espers gave the king the power to unlock the sealed gate one time and only one time. They did this so that there in case of an emergency, there would be someone who could open the gate and call for aid."  
Edgar took all that in. "But that was my ancestor, Ebony. I cannot do such things."  
Ebony shook her head. "That not entirely accurate, Majesty. There was another part of the spell that the espers gave to the king. It allowed that the spell be transferred from the king to him offspring, but only from king to king along that bloodline."  
"In other words, I can't open the door even though I'm Edgar's brother because I'm not a king," Sabin concluded. Ebony nodded.  
Edgar thought for a moment. He hoped that the legend was right. That way Ebony would get a chance to go home. He was also glad to be helping her. "Okay. I understand. Let's go."  
Ebony looked at him and smiled. "Thank you, Majesty. I am eager to be reunited with my fellow espers." He returned the smile.  
"Is that it?" Sabin asked, pointing. They looked up to see a set of massive doors at the top of a small incline.  
"Yes! We've made it!" Ebony shouted, jumping for joy. "Okay, from here on out, Edgar had to go on alone. We shouldn't get too much closer," Ebony stopped. The others did to, staring at the massive door about five yards away.  
"What do I do?" Edgar asked.  
"There is an imprint of a hand on the door. Just place your hand in the imprint," Ebony explained. "Then the spell on the door will weaken, so the door can be opened by a normal person." Edgar nodded, and then made his way up to the door. He wasn't nervous about opening the door. In fact, he was glad to do it to help his new friend.  
He stopped in front of the door. 'There is it,' he thought, seeing the hand imprint before him. He reached over and placed his own hand over the imprint. There was a loud groan that seemed to come from the door itself. He paused for a moment, and then looked over his shoulder. "I think it's safe."  
"He's right." Ebony came to stand by Edgar, followed in short by Sabin and Terra. She pulled on the giant handles, easily opening the doors.  
There was a bright light, and then the four of them gazed into the esper world. Terra was in awe. It was wonderful. More than she could ever imagine. Ebony took a step through the door and looked back at Terra.  
"Terra, if you wish, you could accompany me. You have as much right as me to pass through the doors into our world. It is your choice, but this door cannot be opened again. Not even if His Majesty tried."  
Terra thought hard about what Ebony had said. This was her last chance to return to the esper world. Edgar can never open the door again. But...if she went through the doors, she would never see her friends again. She looked at Edgar. She could not leave him, or any of the others.  
"I have decided," she said, "to stay with those I love and care about. I cannot leave them."  
"Very well. Farewell, Terra. Thank you, Your Majesty. I owe you so much, yet cannot repay you."  
Edgar smiled. "How about calling me Edgar instead of all the formalities."  
Ebony smiled back. "Very well. Farewell...Edgar." She was about to turn to go when she stopped. She glanced down at her medallion for a moment, and then removed it. She looked at Edgar and placed it around his neck. "This medallion will help protect you and has magic powers. I want you to have it."  
"But—," Edgar protested.  
"No buts. Please accept it as my thanks to you. It's the least I can do for abducting you." Edgar nodded, smiling at his friend.  
She waved to the three friends, then turned and walked through the doors. As soon as she was through them, they slowly closed, forever sealing the two worlds.  
  
~Fin~  
  
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Joy: What did you think? Review and let me know! :o) 


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